Objectives: The overall objective of the proposed research is to develop Cf-252 fission-induced plasma desorption mass spectrometry, (PDMS) as a new method for studying the structures of non-volatile molecules of biological importance and for obtaining more detailed metabolic profiles through the analysis of the non-volatile components of biological fluids. The PDMS method will be used to develop a data base for amino acids and peptides for sequencing studies using artificial intelligence techniques. Non-volatile biomolecules from other laboratories will be studied. A liquid chromatography - PDMS system will be developed for analysis of biological fluids using pattern recognition techniques and identifying specific components associated with disease conditions.